Role reversal
by xXSakura-Hime-SamaXx
Summary: (AU) She loved him, as odd and strange as that sounded for someone of her background. She loved that he actually cared about her, cared about the girl everyone else only used for their own gain. She loved him, and now it was time to let him go.


**Kisame X Sakura**

* * *

Their friendship was one that should have never been, but was anyway. Despite the odds, despite the looks and changing feelings on both parts- they still stuck together. Looking back at it all now, if someone had told Sakura that the boy she'd bumped into on the first day of school would eventually mean this much to her- she would have called them a liar.

Probably something _worse_ than a liar actually, but hey, that was in the past now.

For years, their odd friendship had prospered, grown and slowly evolved into what it was today. Every time she looked up at the tall, intimidating boy, her heart skipped a beat and her palms got sweaty.

She…she loved him.

And that was why she had to let him go.

Because as intimidating as he looked, Kisame couldn't hurt a fly.

Her on the other hand…

Sakura Haruno, the enforcer of the Konoha gang, _could _hurt someone.

_Would_ hurt someone.

Had done so before.

She may look bookish, may sound kind and soft and gentle, but what better cover was there nowadays? She had no idea how many times her and Kisame had been pulled over by the police, only to have the blue skinned man searched while they over looked her completely.

And she hated it.

Hated that he had to go through that, that he even had to offer to look scary or threaten someone so she could slip by and drop off whatever she had on her.

He used himself, his put on attitude, to let her get away.

Every. Single. Time.

And it was killing him.

Sakura _knew_ it.

Each time someone cowered away from him and that look of sadness crossed his eyes, Sakura just wanted to go over and show them exactly _who_ they should be afraid of. She'd offered to do so before, but he'd looked so disappointed in her afterwards that she'd almost started crying.

His opinion of her was all she had.

His friendship was what got her through the day.

Wherever one was, the other wasn't far behind, and everyone knew it.

_Everyone _knew it.

Which was why he'd just gotten hurt, his arm in a freshly done cast, his bruised cheeks still trying to pull up into that grin she loved so much as he told her over and over that _no, it didn't hurt and it wasn't her fault._

But it was.

She knew it.

Her gang knew it.

Kisame, oblivious or naïve as always, would never make it out to be even remotely her fault though.

He never had before, and she knew he wouldn't start now.

It…it hurt to see him like this, so broken and small an_d oh god, she couldn't start crying, not now please god no._

If he saw her crying, he'd get upset.

And if he got upset, she'd break.

He was too carefree, too bright and full of life to see sad.

But... wasn't that exactly what she'd come here to do? Didn't she come here with every intention of it being her last visit?

After today, she'd resolved to never see him again.

Never.

Because if she did, he'd only get hurt again.

This was best for both of them…for him, even if it broke her heart.

She loved him, as odd and strange as that sounded for someone of her background. She loved him and his carefree nature, his grins, his odd looks and joking personality. She loved that he overlooked her job, that he didn't care what she did when wearing her mask, that he was always there no matter _what_.

She loved that he actually cared about her, cared about the girl everyone else only used for their own gain.

And now…now it was over.

"Alright Pinky, it's getting late, you should probably head off home before that blond bodyguard of yours starts breathing down my neck again. Seriously, I keep you out late for _one_ night and_ I'm_ the bad guy here!"

"Y-yeah. Yeah I should probably go." A small watery chuckle escaped her then, despite her efforts to keep it bottled away.

The look of worry in his eyes was instantaneous.

"Hey, you okay kid?"

"Kid? I'm a year younger than you genius, shut your trap!"

"Sakura, I'm serious. What's wrong?"

Yeah, she'd always been bad at hiding things from him.

"Nothing," She took a deep breath then, steadying herself as she took one last long look at him. "Nothing's wrong, It's just….I've been thinking lately-"

"Don't hurt yourself."

"-Shut the hell up. I've just been thinking and I wanted to thank you. These past twelve years…you've always been there for me. Be it as a scrawny eight year old, or a buffed up nerd of a twenty year old-"

"I take offense to that!"

"- You've always done what was right, what was best for me. So thank you, thank you so much. I'll…I'll never forget that."

Silence fell between them then, a hushed, yet slightly anxious silence that had Kisame fidgeting in his bed.

"Sakura, I-I need to tell you, and I've waited for so long but I really just need to say it-"

"Nope! Whatever it is can wait until tomorrow, I can tell your meds are kicking in!" She scolded lightly, a large, slightly strained smile on her face as she leaned over and smacked his bruised cheek lightly, giggling as he scowled back at her.

"I'm _serious_ here-"

"So am I, and I really need to go."

"Sakura-"

"Later Kisame, and if you try and hobble to the kitchen and hurt yourself again, I'll kill you!"

"Sakura I-"

"And I swear, you better keep studying, you have an exam next month you can't flunk okay?"

"Please-"

She'd stood during this, walking backwards towards the door, her eyes never leaving him as she continued to list out seemingly pointless threats and reminders.

"Goodbye Kisame, and thank you for everything."

And she was gone, the door to his room falling shut behind her with a solid thud. The blue skinned man let out an irritated breath, his eyes glaring at the wall across from him as he shook his head in amazement.

And people called him the oblivious one between them.

"-I love you…Damnit it pinky, why do you keep interrupting me!"

Yet despite that, he couldn't shake the feeling of dread in his stomach, couldn't stop going over everything she'd just thrown at him.

Reminders from exams? Of what he could and couldn't eat while on his meds?

Why did that goodbye seem so final?


End file.
